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No; 752,736. PATENTED FEB. 23,1904.

M M WEST HEEL PROTECTOR. APPLICATION FILED JULY 20, 1908.

7 N0 MODEL.

Mansfiela M.West INVENTOR.

WI TNESSES:

A TTORNE K tor is being driven,

UNITED STATES Patented February 23, 1904.

PATENT OEEIcE.

MANSFIELD M. WEST, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, ASSIGNOR TO NATIONAL SHOE-PLATE MANUFACTURING COMPANY, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, A

PARTNERSHIP.

HEEL-PROTECTOR- SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 752,736, dated February 23, 1904. Application filed July 20, 1903. Serial No. 166,257. .(No model.)

To all wltovn it may concern:

Be it known that I, MANSFIELD M. WEST, a

citizen of the United States, residing at Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Heel-Protectors, of whichthe following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in heel-protectors, and has for its object the production of a protector that can be easily driven intoa heel and which when thus driven will not damage the heel,but will so compress the material of the latter about itself that it will be held permanently in position.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this application, Figure l is a view of the bottom of a heel provided with my protectors on its wearing edges. Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the protector, showing the front side provided with the dovetailed notch.

Fig. 3 is a similar view showing the wedge shape of the blank from which the protector is formed. Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4 4 of Fig. 2. Figs. 5 and 6 show modified forms of the protector, and Fig. 7 is a rear elevation of a heel having a portion of its material torn away to show the protector therein.

Referring to the drawings, in which similar reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, 1 represents the broad wearing-surface or upper edge of the protector. Gradually tapering from this surface the protector becomes quite thin at the lower edge 2, thus making it easy to drive it into the leather.

Heretofore in the manufacture of devices of this general character it has been necessary to corrugate the sides of the same to prevent them from loosening and working out. These corrugations about the sides of the protector make it not only hard to drive, but they damage the leather more or less while the protec- In the form of protector shown the corrugations are unnecessary, as there is a dovetailed notch 3 formed in the side of the protector, which, as will be seen from the following description, answers the same purpose. The upper edge 4 of this notch is bluntand is as broad as the protector is thick at this point. When the protector has been driven into the leather the depth of the notch, it will be seen that there is a part of the leather between and above the points 5 which has not been cut and which comes in contact with the edge 4. On each side of this part of leather there is an unfilled triangular portion of the cut. As is obvious, when the protector is driven deeper than the notch the blunt edge 4 will force the leather which is in its path into these unfilled portions of the cut and will pack it about and above the points 5 so firmly that the protector will be securely held in position. Preferably the protector is so proportioned that the distance between the surface 1 and the edge 4 is somewhat less than the thickness of the first heel-tap, as shown in would loosen the protector, so that it would be liable to come out entirely.

The number and location of the notches 3 may be varied as desired. Thus in Figs; 2 and 3 a single notch is shown that is centrally located at the front of the protector. In Fig. 5 I have shown a pair of notches located at the angles. while in Fig. 6 there are three notches, one being centrally located in each of the sides and also one in the front.

While I have shown the protector as bent into angular form, I desire it to be understood that the form may be varied widely without departing from the scope of my invention as defined in the claims. The angular form is deemed preferable, however, as it affords an extended wearing-surface near the edge of the heel. The shape of the notches 3 may also be. varied as desired, it being only necessary to have the points 5 nearer each other than the sides of the notches, so as to leave unfilled spaces above the points as the protector is driven.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. A shoe-protector having a broad wearing-surface and a cutting edge at its lower part, said wearing-surface and said edge being substantially parallel, and the said cutting 1 edge being provided with a notch that is wider above than it is at the said edge, for the purpose specified.

2. A shoe-protector having a broad wear-- ing-surface and a cutting edge, said edge being substantially parallel with the said wearing-surface and being provided with a notch that is wider above than it is at the said edge,

the upper wall of the notch being blunt whereby the edge cuts the shoematerial as the protector is driven and the blunt upper wall of the notch crowds the material into the cut that is formed by the lower edge.

3. A shoe-protector having a ing-surface and gradually tapering in crosssection toward an edge at its lower part, said edge being substantially parallel to the'said wearing-surface, and having a notch that is broad wearwider above than it is at the said edge, the

upper wall of the notch being blunt whereby the edge cuts the shoe material as the protector is driven and the blunt upper wall of the notch crowds the material into the cut that is formed by the lower edge.

4. In a heel having an outer heel-tap, abent shoe-protector having a wearing-surface and a cutting edge, the said edge being provided with a notch, and the distance between the wearing-surface and the edge being greater than the thickness of the heel-tap, but the 1 distance between the bottom of the notch and MANSFIELD M. WEST.

, Witnesses:

L; Lou s MALM, C. R. BROWN, 

